Stirring Moments is an old cookbook compiled by the Clipped B’s. Who are the Clipped B’s you ask? Do you remember Braniff Airlines? The Clipped B’s are former Braniff Flight Attendants who decided to compile a cookbook of “culinary delights”. I love old cookbooks that tell something about history and this cookbook does just that. Throughout the pages, the Clipped B’s recorded the history of the airline. Braniff Airlines was started by Tom and Paul Braniff, who were brothers. Tom Braniff was an insurance man from Oklahoma. The two men, along with some of their friends purchased a Stinson-Detroiter in 1927. This small plane had six seats and its fuselage and wings were framed by steel tubing with wood catstrips between and covered with canvas. They originally planned to use the plane for pleasure. However, one by one, their friends renounced their shares in the airplane. Paul convinced Tom to start an airline with Paul being the one and only pilot. Paul flew his first passenger in June 1928 from Oklahoma City to Tulsa. His duties were not limited to being just the pilot, it is said that he served coffee to his passengers as well. It was not until 1937 that the first hostesses (flight attendants) were hired. Braniff received almost 800 applications for their hostess positions, but just ten girls were chosen to go through training, and only six were actually inducted as part of the Braniff hostess service. These early flight attendants were required to be nurses and they wore air force wings on their uniforms. Braniff grew over the years and flew both domestic and international flights, but called it quits and liquidated all their assets in 1989.

I’m not sure why the history of Braniff Airlines interests me so much. Perhaps I get the fascination of airplanes from my Paw Paw, who taught soldiers to fly back in WWII. After the war, my Paw Paw opened his own flight school out at Hooks Airport in Spring, Texas. He took me for my first plane ride when I was about 6 years old. I can still recall sitting in the back of his Cessna and looking down at the world below me… how tiny everything looked. My husband thinks it’s funny that I like to watch planes take off and land, or just watch them as they fly overhead. At any rate, I love this cookbook not only for the history it tells, but for the recipes. Once again, I had a real hard time picking one recipe. I finally decided on a recipe for “Artichoke Chicken”, submitted by Rhea Maquire. I made just a few changes and the recipe posted below reflects my changes. I really didn’t change much at all, but I did used fresh mushrooms instead of canned mushrooms. I just don’t like the texture of canned mushrooms. This meal was really good. The chicken was tender and the flavor was good. I served this over cooked egg noodles along with green beans. I would definitely make this recipe again.

Artichoke Chicken

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken tenders

1 teaspoon seasoned salt

3 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 6 oz can marinated artichokes, drained, reserve marinate

¼ cup water

1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules

½ pound fresh mushrooms, sliced

¼ cup white wine

In a large skillet, melt butter. Add chicken tenders and sprinkle with seasoned salt. Brown chicken tenders on each side. In a separate bowl, combine flour, ¼ cup artichoke marinate and ¼ cup water, and chicken bouillon granules. Add this mixture to the skillet along with the mushrooms and artichokes. Stir in wine. Cover and cook slowly for 15-20 minutes or until the tenders are cooked through. Serve over rice or noodles.

2 responses to “Stirring Moments”

Hi Kim – I was looking for some new recipes and I always check out your recipes on recipezaar since you are such a great cook…(I know this because you’re my wonderful sister-in-law)…and that is how I got plugged into your awesome blog! What a great idea….I can’t wait to try out some of these recipes, and for anyone out there that doesn’t believe she has around a 1000 cookbooks, I can tell you it’s true…..I think my brother is still building shelves in the garage! Love Ya…Shirl